RYE - Rye is joining a growing trend among Sound Shore communities as it finds new uses for vacant office space.

Construction is slated to start on a 122-unit senior home in a former office building at 120 Old Post Road after the city's Planning Commission completes a site plan review.

"We're a single step away from construction — this is going to happen," said Rye City Councilman Richard Mecca, a Republican and a member of the city's Planning Commission. "From a personal perspective, this is a good concept. Do I continue to want to cut the grass? Do I continue to want worry about my home? In this type of facility, you lock your door and that's it. That's why there is a market for this type of property."

As part of the proposal, the building, which has been vacant since 2009, would be knocked down and a 245,000-square-foot "luxury residential" complex would be constructed in its place. The complex would be more than three times larger than the office building.

The home would have 122 units — a mix of one and two bedrooms — for residents over 55. Amenities include an indoor gym, swimming pool and underground parking lots. The driveway entrance would remain near its current location and provide access to Playland Access Drive.

The building's owner, Old Post Road Associates, a subsidiary of Rye's Alfred Weissman Real Estate, bought the property in 1997 for $1.4 million. In 2012, after years of weak office-space demand, Weissman asked the city council to change the zoning district of the 7-acre property from office to hotel in order to build a Hampton Inn. After community opposition, the plan was rescinded and a vote on the zoning change never took place.

In 2015, Weissman came back to the council with an updated proposal for the senior home, saying it's more suitable for Rye.

The council approved both the rezoning and the project application in January. The Planning Commission is now conducting a detailed site plan review.

The exterior of 120 Old Post Road in Rye.(Photo11: Mark Vergari/The Journal News)

Lawyers representing Weissman have said in prior council meetings the proposed building would have minimal impacts on the surrounding community.

The site wouldn't increase burden on Rye's schools and it would benefit property tax assessments, which have eroded due to decreases in the market value of office spaces, according to a June 2015 memo from Weissman's lawyers to Rye City Mayor Joe Sack.

Mecca said the project's impact on traffic and Rye's schools are two areas of particular focus for the Planning Commission as it conducts the site plan review.

Rye High School, at 1 Parsons Ave., is a mile away from the proposed site. School district officials did not return requests for comment.

"The council needs to be aware of the school district's concerns and about the fact that the traffic flow changing to non-office hours," Mecca said. "People got used to less traffic because the space had been vacant for so long."